GOP Incumbents Advance In Key California Congressional Races
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Several GOP incumbents advanced Tuesday in key California congressional races.
Incumbent Republican David Valadao easily qualified for a November runoff for the House seat in a Central Valley district where his party lags Democrats by 16 points in voter registration.
Valadao, who coasted to a second term in 2014, is seen as a top target by Democrat leaders.
Democrats Daniel Parra, a Fowler city councilman, and Emilio Huerta, a Bakersfield attorney and son of labor icon Dolores Huerta, were locked in a race for the second spot in the runoff.
Both have kept their distance from national party leaders two years after the stinging loss for the party.
In the Los Angeles area, incumbent Republican Steve Knight, also considered a target by Democratic leaders, advanced to the November runoff. Democratic attorney Bryan Caforio, who was recruited by national party leaders, held a lead over fellow Democrat Lou Vince, a Los Angeles Police Department lieutenant, who trailed in fundraising.
Statements on immigration and Mexico by the presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump have raised hopes for Democrats in some districts with large Latino populations.
An open primary approved by voters in 2010 sends the top two vote-getters to a November showdown, regardless of their political party.
Incumbents appeared poised to survive Tuesday, making the stakes more about creating key matchups in November in about a dozen of the 53 congressional contests.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Honda and former Obama administration official Ro Khanna are slated for a rematch of their 2014 contest for a San Francisco Bay-area congressional seat. Honda and Khanna, both Democrats, topped a field of six candidates in the primary.
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Since narrowly defeating Khanna two years ago, Honda is the subject of a congressional ethics investigation into whether he and his staff used official resources for campaign purposes.
Republicans sought to pick up a coastal district that includes Santa Barbara after the retirement of Democrat Lois Capps, who has represented the area for nearly 20 years. GOP competitors Justin Fareed, a rancher, and Katcho Achadjian, a state assemblyman, were locked in a close race for second.
Democrat Salud Carbajal, a Santa Barbara County supervisor who is backed by Capps, led the crowded field. The Santa Barbara district leans Democratic, but the strong GOP field in a wide-open race raised Republicans' hope for pickup.
The voting offered a preview of a showdown in the Sacramento area between two-term Democrat Ami Bera, who supported "fast-track" authority for President Barack Obama to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and Republican Scott Jones, a Sacramento County sheriff who enjoyed Teamsters backing until his support for Trump prompted the union to rescind its endorsement.
Bera and Jones were the only two candidates in the 7th Congressional District, which includes the suburbs south and east of Sacramento. They both advanced by default Tuesday, with initial returns showing Bera leading.
Jones is running on immigration and national security issues. He rose through the ranks of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department and was elected sheriff in 2010.
In San Diego, Republicans Denise Gitsham, a businesswoman, and Jacquie Atkinson, a defense consultant and former Marine, fought to advance against Democrat Scott Peters, who upset labor for supporting Obama on trade and has amassed more than $2 million for his campaign. Peters advanced to the runoff by a wide margin trailed by Gitsham and Atkinson.
In the Central Valley, Johnny Tacherra, a Riverdale dairy farmer, held a commanding lead over fellow Republican David Rogers, a Madera County supervisor, to secure a slot in November against Democratic incumbent Jim Costa, who also supported Obama on trade.
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